Coronavirus: Greater Manchester's 'busiest weekend since lockdown'

It was an "incredibly busy" weekend, says Chief Constable Ian Hopkins

Greater Manchester had its "busiest weekend since lockdown began" with 1,700 reports of parties and gatherings allegedly breaking the rules.

Over the VE Day Bank Holiday weekend there were more than 5,000 emergency calls, Greater Manchester Police (GMP) Chief Constable Ian Hopkins said.

"It was incredibly busy... 30% up on the previous weekend," he said.

Incidents included a birthday party in Bolton attended by about 40 people, leading to the arrest of seven people.

'People still dying'

Mr Hopkins said the combination of the bank holiday, celebrations for the 75th anniversary of VE Day and "some beautiful weather" contributed to the "busiest weekend since lockdown began" and a huge rise in alleged breaches of coronavirus restrictions.

He said GMP took more than 1,700 calls on Friday and Saturday from people concerned about street parties and gatherings, which was "double the weekend before".

"Not all of those incidents were people blatantly flouting the law, it was where people were raising concerns."

"There was a lot of stay at home street parties," he said.

"The vast majority of people stuck to the rules because, despite the change to the [lockdown rules], people recognise people are still dying and the virus is still out there."

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Mr Hopkins said GMP will "focus on core police responses" such as disorder and assaults in public spaces once the new lockdown rules for England announced by Prime Minister Boris Johnson kick in on Wednesday.

Under the conditional plan people will be allowed to take unlimited amounts of outdoor exercise, sit or sunbathe in parks, drive to other destinations to exercise and play sports with household members.

Mr Hopkins said GMP will only deal with "large gatherings" and those who "completely ignore" the two-metre distancing guidance, but pleaded with people to "act responsibly".